Functional rather than attractive, it never seemed odd or significant that we called it the “utility room” growing up. After a major remodel gobbled up our one-car garage, this tiny room became both a laundry room and miscellaneous storage. It was where our washer and dryer and muddy boots lived, … [Read more...] about Utility Room Faith
doubt
Parented by Porchlight
Oh no, the light is out. I’m in hot water. Rolling onto the crunchy gravel drive long past my high school curfew, something seemed off. The familiar porchlight that was always on until our last family member was safely inside, was dark. Either there had been a family emergency and they’d … [Read more...] about Parented by Porchlight
Not What We Expected
It’s been six months since we said goodbye in the middle of a bizarre autumn cold snap. It should have been in the high 60s that day. But it wasn’t. Snow fell like grace in the late October wheat fields as we buried my momma. A strange blanket of comfort, as if God was saying, Unexpected … [Read more...] about Not What We Expected
What Love Looks Like
I was in third grade before I knew that a human heart is not smooth and simple and symmetrical. A trip to the science museum proved it. Wondrous and vital as the human heart is, it’s also scary-looking, lopsided, and a bit complicated. Love first masquerades as a soft romance, too. But when we … [Read more...] about What Love Looks Like
In the Shadow of a Stump
Some scriptures just seem to overpromise. Like the one about how believers can run and not grow weary, how we can soar on wings like eagles (Isaiah 40:31). I can’t remember ever running (or believing for something long-term) without getting super exhausted. And heart failure makes it nearly … [Read more...] about In the Shadow of a Stump
Finding Answers in Unanswered Prayers
I begged my daddy to say yes. I flashed my brown eyes at him, daring him to resist. My eight-year-old mind just knew I could prove my maturity by being admitted to The Headless Woman carnival sideshow. I remember her well. The version that made her rounds at the Kansas State Fair decades ago sat … [Read more...] about Finding Answers in Unanswered Prayers